All I can tell you is my personal experience with hearing (mine is super acute), with microphones (I speak and perform), and with a very close friend with blindness. Some people really can hear and sense better than others. And legally blind people often still have “light and shadows” capability, but nothing beyond that.
That said, neither of us knows the truth I’m just saying, it’s possible he is legally blind—profoundly so—but also was able to sense the falling piece of equipment and instinctively make a lucky grab for it.
If you’ve been performing for a long time, has it been with ear protection? Have you noticed any loss of the top register, or conversations against a roomful of noise?
In-ear monitors with an Aviom to control the levels of other players. Nope. I hear just fine.